GIANNI Zuiverloon will prove to be a £3.2million bargain for Albion, according to team-mate and former rival Jonas Olsson.

Swede Olsson knew all about Zuiverloon long before the duo pitched up at The Hawthorns this summer.

Olsson played for NEC Nijmigen while Zuiverloon was at Dutch Eredivisie rivals Heerenveen.

Both players have caught the eye for Albion but Zuiverloon’s form is no surprise to Olsson.

He revealed the Dutch under-21 international was one of the nation’s hottest properties.

Olsson, who joined Albion for £800,000 just before the August transfer deadline, said: “I played against him a few times in Holland and he is a very good full-back who has it all – athleticlism, he’s good with the ball and speed.

“If he goes on like this, I think he can be a very good player.

“Gianni was well rated in Holland.

“He always plays for the under-21s. He played a few games for Feyernoord, a big club in Holland, before he moved to Herenveen.

“He came for a lot of money but that looks justified – West Brom paid pretty high for him but that was no surprise in Holland because West Brom rated him very highly.”

Olsson may not necessarily be restricted to a defensive berth at The Hawthorns.

The 25-year-old occasionally played as a holding midfielder at NEC and would not be averse to filling that role again, although he prefers a more orthodox defensive position. Even so, that may give Mowbray an alternative option, not least as he wanted to bring in Rangers midfielder Kevin Thomson during the recent transfer window.

“I played as a defensive midfielder in Sweden but I think my position now is centre-half – I like it there,” added Olsson.

“I feel more comfortable with the ball there. That is my position now.

“If the manager asked me, I would play where there but at the moment the midfielders we have are doing a great job.”